4300 Somerton Road Trevose, PA 19053 | 215-639-4330
Dr. Jeremiah Wright, one of the most gifted preachers this country has every produced tells the story of flock of geese to give us greater insight into our own lives. He stated that when a flock of geese flies, they fly as a team. They fly as a unit. They fly with one goal: to get from Point A to Point B. If you notice, the formation of a flock of geese is always in the shape of a “V,” and there is one goose that is at the point of that “V.” That is by design. The goose at the point of the “V,” the lead goose, is creating a pocket of air current that makes flying for the rest of the flock much easier. The lead goose is hitting the headwinds straight on. The lead goose is being buffeted by the crosswinds, the down winds, and the wind shears. The lead goose is taking the punishment so that the other geese behind him or her can have an easier path through which to fly. They all are on the same team. They all have the same goal. They all fly with the same purpose: to get from Point A to Point B.
When the lead goose has been beat up too much, has been beaten down too much, or gets too tired to stay on the point and be buffeted any longer, it gives a signal and whoosh–a teammate, an ally, another goose, shifts position with it to take the point and give the leader some rest. But they do not stop flying. They are all on the same team. They all have the same goal. They are all flying with the same purpose: to get from Point A to Point B.
If a goose gets sick, if a goose gets tired, if a goose gets hurt, or if a goose get wounded, they don’t let that goose go down to the ground all by itself. Two other geese at a minimum, sometimes three, sometimes four, go down with the tired goose or the wounded goose, and they stay with the one who had to drop out until that one is strong enough to get back up and resume flying again. Or they will stay with the goose until it dies so that it will not have to die alone. Geese got more sense than people!
Whenever you hear all of that infernal noise coming from a flock of geese, moreover, it is not just background noise. It is not just needless noise. The geese in the back of the “V” formation are honking their encouragement to the goose that is up on the point. They are saying, “Honk! Go ahead. Honk! You are doing a good job. Honk, honk! We got your back. Honk, honk! Let us know when you need some help or you need some rest.”
Don’t you wish church folk had as much sense as geese?